Two districts of Dagestan were left without gas after an explosion near Kizilyurt.

The fire on the Mozdok-Kazimagomed gas pipeline has been extinguished, but gas supply to Kizilyurt, part of Makhachkala, and villages in the Kizilyurt and Kumtorkalinsky districts has been cut off. The cause of the emergency was a technical failure; rumors of a gas pipeline explosion are unfounded, the mayor of Kizilyurt stated.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot," hundreds of residents were evacuated from three villages in the Kizilyurt district of Dagestan following an explosion and fire on the Mozdok-Kazimagomed gas pipeline. According to authorities, there are no casualties or injuries.

A flare fire that erupted after explosions on a section of a main gas pipeline in the Kizilyurt district of Dagestan has been extinguished, the republic's branch of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations reported.

The fire "self-extinguished" after a valve on the gas pipeline was closed, but firefighters continue to extinguish dry grass fires near the site of the accident, said Israfil Israfilov, head of the Dagestan Regional Control Center.

"The preliminary cause of the incident is a depressurization of a section of the pipeline. The situation is under the control of emergency services," he wrote on his Telegram channel. Villagers living near the pipeline who were previously evacuated have been allowed to return home.

Due to an accident, gas supply to Kizilyurt and villages in two districts of Dagestan, Kizilyurt and Kumtorkalinsky, will be interrupted within the next 24 hours, the city administration reported.

Furthermore, due to an accident on the main gas pipeline, gas supply to Makhachkala has been partially cut off, TASS reported. Gas supply has also been cut off to parts of the settlements of Endirey (Khasavyurt district) and Leninaul (Kazbekovsky district), according to the Telegram channel "Ask Rasul."

The administration of the Kazbekovsky district of Dagestan, in turn, reported that gas outages on June 9 will affect four districts: Kazbekovsky, Kizilyurtovsky, Khasavyurtovsky, and Babayurtovsky.

The head of Kizilyurt, Said Mamatkhanov, denied reports that the Mozdok-Kazimagomed gas pipeline was deliberately blown up. The official urged people to believe only official information.

"A wave of alarming rumors has already begun to spread on social media and messaging apps. I ask you not to panic or spread unverified stories about drones, terrorist attacks, or bombings. (...) The only known cause at this time is a technical failure," Mamatkhanov wrote on his Telegram channel.

Acting head of the Kizilyurt district, Magomed-Gadzhiyav Kadiev, told reporters that a powerful explosion frightened villagers whose homes are located near the gas pipeline. "People were scared. Even in nearby villages, people say their houses shook," the official said.

Kadiev acknowledged that more than 20 residential buildings are located directly within the pipeline's safety zone. According to regulations, there shouldn't be any residential buildings there, but these buildings were erected before the master plans and safety zones were approved. These buildings cannot be demolished, the head of the district administration explained on Ren-TV, as this would leave people homeless.